Can't phone station

[whole diary]

[matth1j]

Hi,

I commute between Reading (platform 4 ) and Bath 3 days a week, cycling to Reading station and leaving my bike there. This morning I got to Bath and realised I'd left my lights on the bike. It's not the first time I've done this, and in the past I've rung the station and a nice member of staff has gone out, taken them off, and looked after them until I got back.

However, today when I rang the FGW^▸ (First Great Western) 0845 number to get the Reading station number, I was told that no stations have a direct number any more for security reasons, and that only the Police can contact them directly in an emergency.

So I have to keep my fingers crossed and hope that either:

• the thieves have a day off, or
• someone else takes the lights off and hands them to security (something I've done in the past)

I know it's my own stupid fault, but I do wonder what the problem is with stations having their own number 

John

[vacman]

Problem is if every station had a direct line then people would be ringing up all the time for train enquiries etc, when you got to Bath the station team there could have rung Reading for you?

[matth1j]

Problem is if every station had a direct line then people would be ringing up all the time for train enquiries etc

The number wasn't generally available from what I remember - you had to ask for it. Anyway, this apparently wasn't the problem - it was 'security'.

when you got to Bath the station team there could have rung Reading for you?

Even they couldn't have rung I was told - they could only have sent a 'radio message'.

But yes - I could have tried that if I'd known I wouldn't be able to ring them myself.

[Tim]

Of course stations have phone numbers (else how could the police contact them in an emergency).  FGW^▸ (First Great Western) don't want to give them out to the general public which is fair enough, but a message could be passed from one station to another.  Sounds like some jobs-worth being awkward

whenever security is mentioned someone is usually lying. 

[Super Guard]

Problem is if every station had a direct line then people would be ringing up all the time for train enquiries etc

The number wasn't generally available from what I remember - you had to ask for it. Anyway, this apparently wasn't the problem - it was 'security'.

when you got to Bath the station team there could have rung Reading for you?

Even they couldn't have rung I was told - they could only have sent a 'radio message'.

But yes - I could have tried that if I'd known I wouldn't be able to ring them myself.

Any station can ring any number on the rail network.  It's even possible I think to ring every number from an external phone, but as some have pointed out, we'd have non-stop enquiries.

[Tim]

trying calling FGW^▸ (First Great Western) again.  Hopefully you will get someone more useful this time round

[matth1j]

Well, would you believe it - I got back to Reading this evening and the lights were still on my bike

My faith in human nature is restored. Thanks for the comments and suggestions.

Cheers
John

[Chris from Nailsea]

Any station can ring any number on the rail network.

... otherwise, how could our local station staff spend quite so much time on the phone?   

[matth1j]

It's even possible I think to ring every number from an external phone, but as some have pointed out, we'd have non-stop enquiries.

But isn't that what a customer service person would expect? They seemed to be coping ok when I rang the station last year.

Presumably there are still the same number of inquiries, but now they are all going to the same number.

[G.Uard]

Dunno about the HS^▸ (High Speed (short for HSS^▸ (High Speed Services) High Speed Services)) side, (although I am sure they have a similar policy), but we are told to use our company mobiles to assist with customer service where reasonably possible.  As such, always worth asking the guard for help.

[matth1j]

Dunno about the HS^▸ (High Speed (short for HSS^▸ (High Speed Services) High Speed Services)) side, (although I am sure they have a similar policy), but we are told to use our company mobiles to assist with customer service where reasonably possible.  As such, always worth asking the guard for help.

Will do, thanks. [Sorry- HS?]

[G.Uard]

High Speed, another 5p in the acronym and abbreviation swear box. 

[Chris from Nailsea]

[Sorry- HS^▸ (High Speed (short for HSS^▸ (High Speed Services) High Speed Services))?]

'High Speed' - abbreviated from 'HSS, High Speed Services', but I'll add it to our acronyms list, at http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/acronyms.html  


... and, even as I was writing this, G.Uard confessed! 

[chrisoates]

Dunno about the HS^▸ (High Speed (short for HSS^▸ (High Speed Services) High Speed Services)) side, (although I am sure they have a similar policy), but we are told to use our company mobiles to assist with customer service where reasonably possible.  As such, always worth asking the guard for help.

A while ago I was chatting to the very nice lady station manager at St Erth, boarded the train and found my railcard missing, I had been chatting to her next to a rubbish bin while discarding old tickets....obvious where my card is....leant out the window at Redruth and asked if they could ring St Erth and ask nice lady to look for my card...on my next trip two weeks later my card was returned to me...how many people would empty a rubbish bin ?

 

[Tim]

Presumably there are still the same number of inquiries, but now they are all going to the same number.

If they all go to the same number they can be dealt with more efficiently by a decidated and specially trained person with all the information at their fingertips (at least in theory).  Its a common system when I phone my local bank branch I get answered by the "Natwest Northwest Retail Centre" which is a call centre in Preston.  You dial Ikea Bristol (a bristol number) and you are answered by a person in Peterbourgh